The Cell Phone Bible, Part II

Idea courtesy of apostate, who found the 'What if...?' text in his Facebook feed. If you're coming in late, you can read part I here.

II. The First Calls
Senator Samuel Martin III was sitting at his desk when his Bible rang. The Bible was inches from his hand - he kept it on the corner of the desk, where his visitors couldn't miss it - and the sound it gave off was a clip from the Hallelujah Chorus, which repeated itself at a comfortable volume.

Senator Martin had been expecting this in about the same way that he expected the family dog to discuss economic theory. He started so badly that he nearly fell out of his chair, then turned to gape at the persistently ringing book.

His son, Samuel Martin IV, was sitting in one of the comfortable leather chairs on the other side of the desk, reading a letter that had come for him this morning. It was from Harvard, and he'd been accepted for the Fall. He was too be busy being relieved to be surprised, so he voiced the first thought that came into his mind: "I guess you should have set it to vibrate, Dad."

His father gaped at him. Sam shrugged, reached over, and flipped the Bible open. If this was a joke, it was a good one - he had no idea who could have pulled this off, or how. Seeing his father caught so completely off-guard was a rare pleasure, though.

The chorus ceased immediately, and a voice said: "Senator Martin? Jesus Christ, here."

"Jesus Christ," mouthed the Senator. At least, his lips formed the words; he didn't seem to have the breath to make them audible. Sam wasn't sure if his father was cursing, or just repeating the name.

"Yes, that's right," said the voice from the Bible - and it was, unmistakably, coming from the Bible. Sam reached out and flipped the pages, but they were the same thin onion skin paper that they had always been. If there was a speaker, or any other sort of electronics, he couldn't feel it.

"We need to talk," the voice continued. Sam nudged the Bible, and found nothing on the desk underneath it. The book itself was clearly the source of the voice, which continued: "It's about that measure you introduced to cut government aid."

Senator Martin was starting to regain his composure. He straightened in his chair, and looked quickly around the room - for hidden cameras, Sam supposed. "It's not about cutting aid," he said. "It's about not letting the government take money that it has no right to. Charity should be voluntary, not forced." He drew a quick breath. "Listen, I'm always glad to hear from a constituent, but I prefer to do so at my office, using conventional means of communications. This sort of publicity stunt is ina-"

"I'm not a constituent," the voice interrupted smoothly. "I'm your Lord and Savior."

There was nothing different about the voice, no change in emphasis or tone, but suddenly Sam believed it utterly. He couldn't explain where it came from, this sudden and absolute conviction that this really was Jesus, but he couldn't deny it, either.

His father believed it, too. Sam could tell by the way he sank back down in his seat.

"...And this is not a publicity stunt. Government is your business, and it's up to you to run it. But if you're going to prevent your government from helping the needy on your behalf, then I expect you to pick up the slack. This is your duty as a Christian."

There was a pause. "But..." The Senator swallowed. "Surely we have a choice..."

"Of course you do. I'm not taking away your free will. I'm just giving you enough information to let you choose wisely." There was a brief pause. "Well, that's enough for our first conversation. Feel free to consult your Bible - any Bible - if you have any questions. Oh, and Sam? That work you're doing with Habitat For Humanity... look, I know you're mostly doing it because it looks good on your transcript and because sometimes it helps you get laid. But it really is helping people, so keep it up."

The Bible fell silent, and after a moment Sam watched his father reach out and close it.